the stars burn for us
by halcyon epochs
Summary: lily, scorpius, and late night excursions.


Lily is a light sleeper. It's something she'd inherited from her father, which is both a curse and a blessing.

So when she hears the knock on her window late one night, she immediately bolts upright in bed and reaches for her wand. She stops when she recognizes the silhouette, who has sleek blonde hair that glows in the moonlight.

"Scorpius," she hisses, and clambers hastily out of bed and tiptoes to the window to let him in. She hoists up the window and sticks her head out, a cold draft making her shiver in her thin nightgown.

"Scorpius," she repeats, a little louder this time. "What in Merlin's name are you doing here? It's the middle of the bloody night!"

Scorpius, perched on his broomstick, bobs up and down as the wind blows. "A little of this and a little of that," he replies, his grey eyes sparkling enigmatically.

Lily groans. "Scorp, please," she snaps. "You know I love you and all, but this is — this is ridiculous." She gestures to the broomstick.

Scorpius shrugs. "Well excuse me if I wanted to take my girlfriend out for a romantic ride under the stars," he retorts. "But I suppose if you want to go back to sleep, by all means…" He gesticulates to the room behind her.

"Scor, I —" Lily glances hesitantly over her shoulder at the door. "I would love to, but my parents —"

" — won't find out," Scorpius promises. "We won't be out for too long." His eyes burn into hers, and Lily sighs.

"Oh, all right," she says, "but let me get changed first. I'll catch my death out there in this thing." She gestures to her nightgown. Scorpius raises an eyebrow suggestively.

"I'd much rather you kept it on."

Lily leans out of the window just a tad more, bracing one hand on the frame and using the other to seize his robe and tug him closer, dragging the broomstick by default.

"Patience," she murmurs, her lips meeting his in a chaste kiss. "One day, you'll get to see me _without_ it."

And she disappears into her room, leaving Scorpius with a thundering heart and a spinning mind.

* * *

Mounting the broom is a little awkward, since Scorpius is already in the air, but somehow, they manage. Lily's arms encircle her secret boyfriend's torso in a tight hold, her nose pressed into his hair.

Scorpius tips the handle up and then they're soaring — Lily laughing as the wind rushes through her hair, Scorpius simultaneously maneuvering the broom while allowing Lily's peals of laughter to surge through him and encouraging him to join in with some laughter of his own.

They must look mad, but neither of them gives a damn, it's just them and the sky, the feeling of exhilaration and sweet oblivion and everything in between.

"This is _incredible!"_ Lily cries happily at one point.

It feels an eon passes before Scorpius steers his broom down, landing smoothly in a field. He and Lily both dismount and Lily gets her first view of her new surroundings.

It's very...grassy. Green. Lily turns to Scorpius, curiosity bubbling in her, only to find that he had pulled a blanket out of nowhere and laid it down on the ground.

"The view is up," he tells her softly, and they lay down on the blanket, their hands casually intertwined.

And Lily receives her first look at the sky.

"Holy mother of Merlin," she breathes. "This is — this is _beautiful._ "

Indeed it is. The black sky is scattered with twinkling stars, like paint splotches on a dark canvas.

"Look there." Scorpius points to a spot in the sky. "That's Ursa Major. The great bear."

And then, he points to another place, to a constellation Lily is familiar with. "That's Sirius, the dog star," he clarifies, his voice quieter. "I'm guessing your father has showed you this one."

Lily nods her head, sadness blooming in her heart. She had never met her father's godfather, but from his tales, she'd surmised that they had been very close and it had broken her father's heart when he had died.

"And there's Orion and Cygnus." Scorpius recaptures her attention. "And the star my father was named after — Draco's right over there."

Lily's eyes dart to each one as he points them out, enchanted by each and everyone of them. Each of the constellations had ties to her and her boyfriend, whether distant or direct.

"And then," Scorpius says, his voice lowering to husky tone, "there's Scorpius."

Lily's breath hitches. Rather than looking at the constellation, she makes eye contact with her boyfriend, whose eyes are blazing.

"Scorpius, you say?"

Scorpius doesn't answer. Instead, his eyes turn to the stars, studying them before returning to hers.

"Shame there isn't a lily star," he murmurs. "After all, what's Scorpius without a lily?"

She knows he's not referring to the stars anymore.

"I don't know." Lily taps her chin, attempting to keep _just how much she wants him_ out of her voice. "Maybe you could make one for me."

He leans forward, closing the gap between them. Before their lips touch, he whispers, "I'd do anything for you, Lily."

And with that, their lips meet, under the stars.

* * *

They spend Merlin knows how long there, sometimes kissing, sometimes cuddling. At one point, Scorpius conjures another blanket and wraps them in it. Lily's head rests on his shoulder, his arm around her waist.

And then, Lily realizes that it's almost daybreak, and that her parents will be coming by her room to wake her up soon, and Merlin knows what'll happen when they find her empty bed.

"We have to go," she whispers reluctantly.

Scorpius groans. "Five more minutes," he pleads, his eyes half-lidded with drowsiness.

"Later, darling." Lily starts to unravel the blanket around them. Scorpius resists at first, but she gets him to help by pressing a semi-long kiss to his lips.

The ride back to her home is spent in silence. All Lily can think about is getting back to bed before her parents find out she's gone.

Just before they reach the grounds surrounding her home, Scorpius stops the broom midair, twists around, and plants a not-so-chaste kiss on her lips, which Lily almost loses herself in.

"Parents," she reminds him gently, and Scorpius releases a moan before guiding the broom forward.

They descend upon her home and then, to her window. Lily kisses his cheek before sliding the window up with her wand, slipping inside soundlessly.

Only to be met by the disapproving stares of her parents.

* * *

 _...Apparently, I don't write drabbles anymore._

 _Some the dialogues are a bit awkward — they didn't come out the way I wanted them to. This fic in general is one of my worse ones._

 _Written for:_

 _Marauder Map Madness: 68. Pointing out constellations/81. Enchanted_

 _Book Club - Chris: (relationship) boyfriend, (trope) secret relationship, (word) awkward_

 _Showtime - 12. Anatevka: (object) broom_

 _Amber's Attic -_ _19\. Stand By Me: Write about travelling a long way in order to see something._

 _CYB: P5_

 _Pinata Club: Hard_

WC: 1100


End file.
